Friday, April 18, 2014

Cheapskate Composting

This upright bin cost approximately $30
and fits in a small corner of my yard.

If you are curious about composting but are limited by the size of your outdoor space and don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on fancy rotating composting bins, I encourage you to get started now. There is so
much plant material available to start you off on your composting journey with the
spring garden clean up. Next year you can have your own nutrient rich soil to
add to your garden or containers.

I live in a suburban area with limited lot sizes. There
isn’t a great deal of space for expansive gardens and the virtually free compost piles. But I also know the benefits of composting. It is
possible to make compost in a limited space on a limited budget.

It is the time of year for me to add good quality, nutrient
rich organic material to my raised beds. With the wet weather that we get in
the pacific northwest, essential nutrients can be washed away. While I do add some commercial fertilizer (mushroom and fish manure) to my soil, I like to add as
much of my homemade compost to my garden. Not only am I saving money, I know exactly what has gone into my bins.

Look at the gorgeous colour!

I use upright compost containers from my city, which are
perfect for limited space gardens and limited budgets. Many of the people who have garden plots in
our local community gardens use these in their limited plots because they are so compact. They have an open bottom so beneficial
microbes and critters can enter and help the composting process.

After approximately a year I open up a panel on the front
side of the bin and start digging out the composted soil. The material closest
to the top is from the fall clean up and isn’t ready to use. When I close the
side panel I can push down the material from the top and begin adding new green
and brown layers.

Next year's compost started!

From my one small bin this spring I have been able to use three wheel barrows of usable compost.

After adding to my beds I still have this much
left over for my containers or to share with a neighbour.

It’s so easy to just throw grass cuttings all summer and
leaves in the fall into the bin. Even if you don’t grow a vegetable garden, the
compost can be sprinkled lightly onto lawns, used in flower planters, or shared
with a neighbour or friend who doesn’t have access to yard space.

5 comments:

That is fabulous especially that your city supplies them. Where I work has a kitchen and I've been talking to the kitchen manager about composting. This small nicely contained unit would be perfect there.For myself, I use the 2 piles inside a coated wire fence and flip the new one over 1x per year method. (where it becomes the old one and has nice soil the next spring). But I have a bit of extra space.Kathy

My county used to provide those compost bins as well. Now we have city composting. I still do my own though. Sure, composting is great for lowering the amount of garbage we send to landfills but us gardeners know that compost is even better for all the free, healthy soil it provides!! Such a timely post. I was just thinking today of all the garden clean up that I'd have and how happily full my compost bin would be when I am done.

I love your cheapskate method! I wish my city supplied us with something like that. I just have a big pile in my backyard (in a makeshift compost bin made out of pallets), but it's such a pain to turn over and it takes so long for it to get composted down to where I can use it. When I saw the photo of your end product, I will admit that I oohed and ahhed over it and then felt immediately jealous.